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M. VON RECKLINGHAUSEN.

APPARATUS FOR CHARGING CYLINDERSWITH OXYGEN.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 20. |911.

1,314,773.` Ptentedsept. 2,1919.

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l FIG f UNITED7 'STATES PATENT OFFICE.

MAX VON RECKLING'HAUSEN, OF NEW YORK, N'. Y., ASSIGNOB TO AIB REDUCTION4 COMPANY,"OF NEW YORK, N. Y.,y .A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

APPARATUS FOR CHLRGING- GYLINDEBS WITH OXYGEN.

lTo all whom t may` concern.' Y

Be it known that I, MAX voN REoxLINe- HAUSEN, aGerman citizen, and aresident of the city of New York, county of New York, State of New York,havel myented certain new and useful Improvements 1n Apparatus yforChargipgnCylinders with Oxy' gen, of which the tion.

In the manufacture 'of' oxygen in large lquantities `for commercialpurposes the air is liquefied and the oxygen thereafter separated fromthe nitrogen and other gases by owing is `a specifica- ,'a processofrectification, the ox gen appeering in the form of a liquid. eretofore Yit has been the practice to evaporate this oxygen and store it as a gasin large gasthe force yof expansion due to conversion o ,ticularly fromthe standpoint of the purchaser.

' I have conceived the idea that it would be veryJ desirable and of veryeat advantage if the oxygen were taken om a tank or otherv receptacle inliquid form and conducted therefrom either directly or mediately to theoxygen cylinders so that the pressure of gas 1n the cylindersv could begenerated or produced by theI force of expansion due to .the conversionof the liquid oxygen into a gas,thereb eliminating the operation ofemitting the liquid oxygen lto gasify an thereafter compressing the sameby means of compression apparatus of suitable construction and forcin itunder which it is sent into commerce. t

With this idea' in mind I have conceived and designed certain apparatuswell adapted for electin the lling'or charging of the oxygenpcylin ersfrom tanks or receptacles of l1qu1d oxygen and permitting or causinSpecification of Letters Patent.

f in well compression into the oxygeny cy inders in' Patented Sept. 2,1919.

Application tiled March 20, 1917. Serial No. 155,988.

the oxygen into oxygen to create the proypr tension or compressmn of theoxygen 1n t e cylinders and without the necessity of a gas compressiondeviceLsuch as a force pump. By providing such apparatus I am enabledto-bring about a substantial reduc' tion in"l the cost of chargingvthecylinders with oxyn previously produced as a liquid own air liquefyingand oxygen separating apparatus.

I n one form of Aapparatus employed by me I conduct the oxygen as aliquid from the point where it is collected, 'as for instance, at thebottom or base ofa rectifying column into a tank in which the oxygen.

is caused to boil, that is, is evaporated and lthe gas thus roduced as aresult of the conversion of t e oxygen liquid into a gas is conductedthrou h proper connections to the oxygen cylin ers.

It may hap en that the force of exlpany i ting sion -exerted y the oxyen 'gas resu from such evaporation wi 1 become so great as to render'theconnections between such" tanks liable to explosion, or the pressure ofexpansion might be or become reater than is required to fill the oxygency inders with oxygen gas under the usual pressure of 120 atmospheres. tl

M invention comprehends means for controlling and regulatlng thepressure of the oxygen gas inl the connections and' inthe cylinders intowhich the same has been conducted by the said connections. Other objectsand advantages of my invention will be referred to in the detaileddescription thereof which follows or will be ap arent from suchdescription.

n the accompanying drawings, to which reference shouldbe had for a clearand full u derstanding of my invention, I have il ustrated in a more orless schematic way several modifications of construction embodyin therinciple of my invention, but

it will e un erstood that chan es in the de- Y tails of construction mabe ma e within the scope of the claims. wit out departing from 'myinvention as the same is pointed-out and particularly setforth in thesaid claims. In the accompanylng drawings ;4

Figurel is a top plan view showing a..

plurality of tanks arranged inproxmity loo each other; also indicating acontainer for supplying liquid oxygen {irstto a pipe common to the saidtanks and thence to any one or all of them; and also showing pipes eachFig. 5 is a horizontal sectional view takenon the line C--C of Fig. 3;and

Fig. 6 is a sectional view showing a modi- {ication of the meansemployed for convertthe liquid oxygeninto a gas.

teferring to the drawings, 1 designates a container for the reception ofliquid oxygen as the same is formed'or separated from the nitrogen ofthe atmosphere and may be the base portion of the rectifying column inwhich the separation of the oxygen and nitrogen is effected.v On theother hand the containermay be any other receptacle to and into whichthe liquid oxygen is conveyed after it has been separated from thenitrogen of the atmosphere. The oxygen `which may be collected or whichmaybe present in the container 1 may 'be conveyed therefrom through apipe 2 `to a pipe 3 having, separate pipe connections, as 4, with theyrespective tanks 5v and 5a. I lave illustrated six of these tanks in thedrawings, but it will be understood that the number may be increased ordiminished Yas desired. n

Thepipe 2 is provided with a valve at 7 for controlling `the passage ofthe liquidof the liquid oxygen from the pipe. 3 to` oxygen from the'container 1 into the pipe 3 and the branch pipes 4 are provided withvalves as at 8- for controlling ,the passage the respective tanks 5 and5a. It will be apparent, therefore, that any one or all of the tanks' 5and 5f* may be placed in communication with the pipe 2 and through thelatter with the container 1. In the construction asshown the. severalbranch pipes 4`are connectedv to the underneath side of the said tanks.These' tanks are separate and distinct from each etheras is clearlyshown in the drawings. Y

Each tank is provided. with a pipe 10 which Hextends upwardly therefromand which is provided at its upper endtwith asafety valve and. vent 11of any known construction, thefdetailsof which are not shown-in thedrawings. Each of the tanks 5 is also provided with a pipe 12 whichextends therefrom and which is connected by means of branch pipes 15 andlwith pipes 17 and 18; Passage of gas from the tanks fthrough the pipes,12 to the pipes 17 and 18 is controlled by valves at 19 andv 20 .in therespective branch pipes 15 and 16.l Each of. the tanks 5a is alsoprovided with a pipe 12a which extends therefrom and'which isconnectedby branch pipes 159 and16L with said pipes 17 and 18. y.Valves19,L and 20*L are provided for controlling the passage of gas throughthe branch pipes la'and 16a.`

The two pipes '17 and 18 are common to all `of the tanks, 5 and 5a.

It is preferable that no liquid oxygen "be" `permitted to enter eitherthe pipe 17 or the pipe 18. Any suitable means may be employed inthepipes 12y and 12EL to prevent the passage therethrough of liquid oxygen.

Generally inthe employment of the apparatus the liqueed" oxygen isadmitted from the pipe 3 only into one or more of the tanks 5f, thetanks 5a being reserved and used as safety or press r'e regulatingtanks. If desired, however,can1d if it` be found to be practicable theliqueied oxygen may be delivered into one'or all of the tanks 5tl aswell as the tanks 5.

In order that the operation of vaporization or the conversion of theliqueiied oxygen in the-tanks into gaseous oxygenl may be effectedquickly and rapidly it is desirable that means. be provided fordirecting a curr'ent of relatively warm air or other gas around saidntanks. The' air employed for this purpose should be free from moistureand carbon dioxid in order that the surfaces of the tanks shall notbecome covered with ice or frozen dioxid. r

The manner in which moisture and carbon dioxid are removed is immaterialbut the warm air employed may be taken from some portion of an airliquefying apparatus after these substances have been removed and beforethe air has been cooled tov any suby stantial extent. v

lFor economical reasons the air, after it has been employed foreffecting v'aporization4 of the liquid oxygen in the tanks or 'any ofthem and after it has been cooled in its passage around said tanks,should be con-y ducted to the air liquefying apparatus vandv l itsconstituent parts.

For the purpose of supplying relatively there liquefied and separated,if desired, into tion t o each other. Relativel warm air is supplied tothe pipe 23 and t iencer through branch pipes 25 to chambers or spacesl26 in which the tanks are located. The direction of {iow 1n these branchpipes 25 is controlled by means of check valves at '27.- '.The warm pipe25 is compelled by means of a cut off plate 30 or othery means to travelthrough the said spacea or chamber 26 entirely around the tank lin suchspace or `chamberand is discharged through a branch pipe 31 into theexhaust cold air pipe 24. The branch pipes 31 are also provided withcheck valves for vaporizin the oxygen is reconveye to the air lique yingapparatus and is subsequently liquefied in any known manner. However,lsuch air may be otherwise disposed of. Without the provision ofsomeYsuch means 'asthat described for effecting a more rapid vaporization orboiling in the sarily slow.

It lis, apparent that by pro erl manipu' lating thevalves any one or alo the tanks 5 and 5*,may be connected or disconnected" from the pipe 3.Likewise any one or any number of the said tanksmay be connected `ordisconnected from either or both of the pipes 17 and 18l by manipulatingand proper y setting the valves 19, 19, 2O and 20a.

I have provided two manifolds 40 and 41 ,f

havin means `as indicated at 42 and 43 'where y the said manifolds' maybe connected with oxygen cylinders 44 and 45 to be filled. The number ofcylinders to be filled simultaneously. may be varied as desired.

,'Each of the pipes 17 and 18'is connected with each ofthe manifolds 40and 41 and the pipes 17 and 18 are also connected with each other asshown in Fig. 1.

The pipe 17 is connected to the manifold 40 by means of an extensionpipe 46 which lis adapted to be opened and closedby means of a valve at47. 48 designates a pipe hav--v --ing connection with the pipe 46 andwith the manifold'41 and also with the pipe 18. The

said pipe connection 48 is provided with two valves, one of which 50 issituated between its connection with the pipe 46 and with the manifold41 and the other one of which at 51 is situated between its connectionwith the and the manifold 41,.

. piyglS e e pipe 18 has connection through; the connecting pipe 52withthe manifold 40 and also with the pipe 46 being thereby in com-'munication with the pipe 17 lThe pipe coni nection 52 is adapted to beopened and'fclosed by means of a valve at 55.

may be aipressure greater than 120 atmosf pheresand,'as alreadysuggested, the pres-y Lsure may become so great as to be liable to causean explosion or bursting of the connec- U n V the cyhnders 44 or 45 Ipurpose to employ at 32. From the plpe 24 the air emplo ed' a certainnumber of tanks which I have designated as 5a as safety tanks into whichordinarily no liquefied oxygen is introduced. If the pressure resultingfrom the evaporation of oxygen which has been introduced 1nto any one ormore of the other tanks 5 of the serles is greater than is necessary oris so glreat as to be liable Ato cause an explosion v y 'tanks theoperation would proceed unneces- A or l urstin of an of the parts I openone Vwor more o the va ves 19l or 20BL controlling the branch Ipipes 15aand 16EL so as to relieve Ithe pressure ineither pipe 17 or 18, as thecase may be. Byproperly manipulating the valves and opemng up a greateror less' number of the safety tanks the pressure of the as-may beregulated and controlled.

A r the gas has been charged into the cylinders from one of themanifolds 40 or- 41, say the cylinders 44 having connection with themanifold40, the said cylinders 44' are removed and empty cylinders aresupplied in their laces. The oxygen remainmg in the tan s 5 from whichthe oxygen has been delivered under the pressure required to the oxygencylinders and such of tanks before or as the latter are filled withliquefied oxygen is reduced to a minimum. The oxygen escaping at thislow pressure may be stored and used in other ways, for

instance, for purging the shipping cylinders by creating a vacuum inthem first, so as to remove allimpurity and then fill theml with thislow pressure oxygen before the same are to be attached to the manifold.

` @By properly manipulating the valves 47, 50, `51 and 55 the' cylindershaving connection with one of the manifolds, say 40, may be filled withoxygen gas to the required pressure, say atmospheres, while at the -4same time the tanks from which oxygen has previously been taken at highpressure for filling a series of cylinders may be placed incommunication with newlyl supplied empty cylinders and the oxygen at lowpressure delivered thereto.

The construction of the tanks and 5"L may be varied as. desired and inFig. 6 I haveshown a modified construction of tank or perhaps it ma bemore accurately described as a modi ed construction of means for'effecting evaporation'of the liquefied oxygen. The construction asshown `in said Fig. 6 comprises the pipe 3, the branch -f pipes 4, thevalves 8, the pipes 17 and 18,

the Warm air pipe-23 and the cold exhaust ,pipe 24, substantially asshown in the preceding figures of the drawings. Instead of,

i This pipe is surrounded by a larger helically already described, to te cylinders to be coiled pipe 61 which produces a'helical chamber ,orspace v62 to which warm air from the pipe 23 may be delivered through abranch pipe 63. '64 designates a branch pipe leading from the upper endportion of the helically coiled .pipe 61 to-'the cold air exhaustpipe 24and 65 designatesv a. pipe having connection with the upper portion ofthe helically coiled pipe which pipe 65 is connected by means of branchplpes 66 and 67v with the pipes 17 and 18 from which' the oxygen in theform of a gas. is

delivered through pro er connection s,`as

charged with the gaseous oxygen. The pipe 65 is also provided withacouple of branch pipes 68 and 69, the former being provided at its upperend with a safety ,valve indicated at 70 and the latterbeing providedwith a vent indicated at 71 for permitting air vto enter the pipe 65 andalso for permitting the same aswell as other gases to escape therefromas. the liquid' oxygenv enters through the branch pipe 41. f

Itwill be understood that l there are. branch pipes 4, and pipes' 63, 64and 65 called, interchangers.

for each of the tanks or, a's they may be d lscribed, the combinationofa plurality 'of scribed,`the combination of receivers for receivm aliquefied gas, means `for delivering I 1. The combination of meansforreceiving a liquefied gas, controllable meams for causing evaporation ofsaid gas, a receptacle tobegcharged-with lthe evaporated asl andpressure regulating 'means for -regu at'- ingand controlling vthepressure of the gas in the said means and-in the said receptacle.

2. In apparatus of the character desad 'liquefied gas to any or all ofthe sai receivers, means for causingevaporation of the said liquefiedgas, one or more recep` tacles to be charged with the said evaporatedgas and means intermediate the v said receivers and thel saidreceptacles for 'receivers -for receiving lique scribed.

regulatingand'controlling the pressure of the gas 1n the saidreceptacles. v

3. In apparatusv of the character described, the combination of-aplurality of ed oxygen, means whereby the saidl liquefiedE vox gen maybedeliveredto any one or all o the 'said receivers, means for causingevaporationof the said 'liquefied oxygen, av pipe having connection withthe said receivers, means whereby any or all of the said receivers'maybe connectediwith the said pipe, one or more receptacleshaving'connection with vthe .said pipe for) receiving oxygengastherefrom and means for .regulating and controlling the pressure of theoxygen within the said receptacles.

4. In apparatus of the character described, the combination of aplurality of receivers, means for delivering a liquefied gas to lsaidreceivers, means for causing evaporation of said gas, a plurality ofpipes associated with the said receivers and adapted vto receiveevaporated gas theremeans also having connection with the said pipes,manifolds, vmeans whereby either or both. of the said ipes may beconnected with the said maniolds, substantially as de- 5. In apparatusof the character dereceivers, means for delivering a liquefied lfrom,pressure regulating and controlling eef gas to said receivers, means forcausing u evaporation -of said gas, a plurality of pipes Vassociatedwiththe lsaidreceivers and adapted to receive evaporated gas therefrom,pressure regulating and controlling means also having connection withthe sai pipes, manifolds, means whereby either -or both of the saidpipesmay be connected withthe said manifolds, and receptacles havingconnection with the said manifolds for receiving gas fromqthelatter,substantially as described.'

6. In apparatus of the character -detanks, means for delivering'liquefied oxygen c to certain of said tanks, means 'for causingplurality evaporation of the 4said.oxygen,

v ofpipes each having independen connection with each v of the" saidtanks, additional tanks. each having independent 'connection with lthesaid pipes and beingadapted to evaporated gas in the said .tanks and 'inthe said pipes and receptacles having operative 'regulate and controlthepressurel of the connection with thesaid pipes and being adapted toreceive the oxygen 4gas from the naw/vs n Sensing evdporation of thesaid oxygen, fa plurality of pi es each having independent connect-lonwit each of the said tanks, ad-

ditional tanks each having independent oon nection with the said pipesand being adapted 'to regulate and control the pressure of the evaorated gas in the said tanks and in the sai pipes, manifolds, meanswhereby either or both of the said pipes may be connection with the saidmanifolds, stanltially as described.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my invention I have hereuntosigned my 15 name this 14 day of March A. D. 1917.

' MAX v'oN RECKLINGHAUSEN.

